Last year, we wrote that National Football League (“NFL”) and Washington Redskins wide receiver Pierre Garcon had filed a class-action legal Complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland against the daily fantasy football site FanDuel on behalf of himself and all NFL players. Garcon’s lawsuit alleged that FanDuel was misusing Garson’s, and other players’, names and likenesses without proper licensing or legal permission. Specifically, Garcon’s Complaint had alleged that FanDuel knowingly and improperly has been (1) exploiting the popularity and performance of Garcon and other NFL players without authority or valid license and (2) using the names and likenesses of Garcon and other NFL players without consent. We also noted that Draft Kings, a daily fantasy football rival to FanDuel, was not included in Garcon’s lawsuit, possibly because the NFL players association currently has a licensing agreement with Draft Kings.
Yesterday, Garcon’s attorneys announced that the NFL player has voluntarily dismissed his lawsuit against FanDuel because the two parties have settled out of court. This out-of-court settlement follows the trend of litigants who, one study has shown, settle civil cases 97% of the time. Neither FanDuel nor Garcon has made any substantive comments about the settlement.
Longman & Van Grack’s civil litigation and sports law attorneys regularly represent clients in many different legal disputes, and we have multiple attorneys who are certified to practice in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. Adam Van Grack has assisted many athlete and sports clients through countless complex legal problems. If you would like to contact one of our attorneys, you can reach us at (301) 291-5027.